Restoration at Spey Bay

Shortly after setting up Golf Design Scotland, Richard Le Sueur is picking up prestigious design work for a number of clients. Le Sueur’s most recent commission is to carry out the restoration of Spey Bay Golf Course, acquired by The Hobday Golf Company early in 2004. Neil Hobday, managing director, said, “We have employed Richard’s services on a number of our projects because he brings a wealth of knowledge and experience in the key areas of construction, maintenance and design. It is rare to find one individual so knowledgeable in all three areas.”Spey Bay, home course to former prime minister Ramsay Macdonald, is a classic links layout in Moray, Scotland, and is one of the few remaining courses designed by the legendary Ben Sayers. The course plays over rows of shingle banks formed naturally along the coast over centuries, giving a close relationship to the sea and creating exciting natural undulations on fairways and greens.“We‘re still in the early stages, but it looks likely that we will be returning the course to the original layout, with the reintroduction of a number of Ben Sayers golf holes and hazards which have been lost over time,” said Le Sueur. “We‘ll also be carrying out a restoration programme of bunkers and other important course features, as well as introducing an irrigation system and generally upgrading the maintenance facilities.“It’s important that the green keeping staff have the correct tools to maintain the course to the highest standards throughout the seasons, therefore starting immediately we will be purchasing new machinery and initiating maintenance regimes which will greatly improve all playing surfaces.”Le Sueur, who originally studied architecture in Scotland, moved to the USA to study turfgrass management at Michigan State University, before going on to work with Florida based golf contractor MacCurrach Golf to oversee several of their projects around the country. Subsequently he moved to Bahrain to work on the construction of Riffa Golf Course before being employed by the management company to establish the course for play. Upon completion of Riffa, Richard returned to Scotland to complete a masters degree in golf course architecture at Heriot Watt University and set up Golf Design Scotland.His intention with Golf Design Scotland is to provide a design service combining modern techniques and technology with the philosophies and styles of the influential architects of the past. Le Sueur currently has several other projects in the pipeline, mainly in Scotland, but this year will be looking at exporting his services to Europe and beyond. Web: www.golfdesignscotland.com

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